Don't forget to add you need to add truck shipping charges to the figures
that have. Since this will be in two directions (the core needs to be snt
back) this could add a few humdred dollars to the cost. You might want to
consider taking the engine apart and let a machine shop do the evaluation
for you. You will at least need new bearings and gaskets. You probably
need rings but after that what you'll find in the small print of the
companies that rebuild engines is "closely inspected parts" what that
means is they look at the part and reuse it if it is up to specs. The
machine shop can tell you if your crank is good or your cylinders need
work, and if so they can give you a firm price. If you have the skill to
take your engine out then you certainly have the skill to remove a few
bolts that hold it together. Don't let the size of an engine fool you
there isn't much inside that huge block of iron. You have nothing to loose
but a days work. I think once you have taken it apart you will say to
yourself , self I can put this back together as easy as I took it apart.
Before you know it you will have rebuilt your own engine. Even if you
decide not to put it back together again any machine shop should be able
to give you a firm price to assemble the short block once they get a look
at it. I've never worked on a midget so I can't give specific advice but
if you have some old copies of Moss Motoring check out the article from
about a year ago on engine rebuilding. The first step needs to be an
evaluation of what you now have. After that then decide if is worth
putting the money into your own engine. One other point if the engine
fails then you will be dealing with a mail order company instead of a
local company (or yourself). That means paying the trucking charges all
over again. Many trucking companies leave it up to you to get the engine
on and off their truck. At several hundred pounds this is not the easist
task. The bare block on the other hand can be easily handled by one person
and carried to a machine shop for inspection in the trunk of a car.
...Art
On Fri, 20 Feb
1998, robert weeks wrote:
> howdy,
>
> I posed this question to the spridgets list and didn't get much in the way
> of a response, so I'll give it a try here.
>
> I'm looking for a rebuilt engine for my 1969 Midget. The reason I'm looking
> for a rebuilt, is that the estimates that I have gotten for rebuilding my
> current engine exceed the cost of buying an already rebuilt unit, and
> unlike a rebuilt engine, the price of rebuilding seems to have no ceiling
> on it. It all depends on "what we find when we get in there."
>
> So here are some prices I've gotten for rebuilt 1275s:
>
> Motorhead Ltd: $2750 -- 12 month warranty
> Mini Mania: $1495 - (on sale now) -- 12 month warranty
> British Forum $ 1415 -- 6 month warranty
>
> I'd like to know if anyone has bought an engine from any of these suppliers
> and if so what is your impression of the engine you bought. I'm trying to
> avoid making an expensive mistake, so any help or feedback would be very
> much appreciated.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Robert Weeks
> Durham NC
> 1969 Midget
> http://www.woozy.com/midget/
>
>
>
|